Cards # 51 & 52: Mission Accomplished!

Yay- in 52 weeks I have created and shown here 52 cards! These last two were fun, using special decorative paper and more. I left the green card without additional embellishments because I really like the look of the gold embossed leaf (imagine a large sheet of the same…yep, another scrapbook background paper).

It took me a while to dream up something special for the red card. On both, I kept the natural ragged edge, rather than trimming it to perfection. I folded the edges under the top panel of the card. I started by figuring out how to incorporate the black paper that I had selected to photograph the card on.

Over a couple of days, I thought about using a contrasting yet neutral shade, possibly a stamp, maybe a ribbon or strip of those tone on tone swirls? Whew, I’m really pleased with how this one turned out, complete with sparkles.

Now, to send them out into the world! Stay tuned for a new challenge!

Boston & cards # 49, 50

Last year, I posted about a perfect day in Boston, but there are many other parts of town to recommend. First and foremost is Fenway Park, and I am proud to say that I’ve been a fan of the Boston Red Sox since 1988 (way before they WON). Be prepared to have dollar bills- well, fives, tens, and twenties- flying out of your wallet at  vendors in and around the park, but it’s a fun experience!

The Charles River is a great spot to bicycle, rollerblade, jog, or walk. This is a view of Boston from the Cambridge side of the river. Parking is tight, but you can take the T to Lechmere and walk where this photo was taken, or along the Esplanade on the Boston side, which can be reached from the MGH stop, Arlington, Copley, and others if you don’t mind a longer walk.

A harbor tour is fun, though the food on board may not be stellar. I’ve taken Duck tours in other cities but not Boston, and enjoy seeing the view from the water. Boston is a walkable city, though cold during winter months, filled with interesting museums, restaurants, and entertainment choices.

Card # 48- silver doily

The bottom half of a package of scrapbooking pages was damaged in last year’s basement flood, and being the thrifty New Englander that I am, I decided that I could turn the top halves of the pages into greeting cards. I trimmed the raised edges and measured the remaining paper to fit some extra envelopes on hand. 

I’ve been coached regarding the merits of doilies in crafts by Nicole of Lavender Nest and thought of her immediately upon seeing a package of silver doilies in the sale bin at a craft supply store. Note to self: DON’T attempt to separate doilies over a brand new (pristine) table cloth! Duh… the factory DID NOT remove all the itsy bitsy pieces of paper from the design. 

The first one I separated from the pile and cut in half turned out to be FOUR doilies! Good thing my trusty furry assistant was on hand to supervise closely as I arduously separated them, thus creating hundreds of tiny pieces of shiny paper (onto the new table cloth).

All in all, I’m pleased with my foray into doily-land. I made a bunch of identical cards, but will only count this one towards the contest. Four to go!

What is your favorite crafty use for doilies?

Cards # 43-47 Inspirational Quotes Part 2

“Cleave ever to the sunnier side of doubt.” -Tennyson

I put glitter on the previous set of cards, and thought about re-photographing them, but am now glad I didn’t so this batch will have a new feature. How about that background paper?

I’ve had these pink envelopes for over a year, so now is the time to share them with others, bedecked.

Only one more set of quotes in the supply pile, though I may make the last 5 cards in the challenge out of photos again. A year ago, I thought making one card per week was a good pace, but since I’ve not created stunning layers and detailed decorations, creating themed sets (in batches) has worked well for me.

Cards #38, 39, 40, 41and 42: Quotes and Stamps

“Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, it empties today of its strength.” –Corrie ten Boom 

This week was “do it or give up” time on completing the 52 cards by March, so I used a sheet of quotes from a magazine ad to make 5 at once. After adhering the quotes onto cheerful paper, I stamped away, decorating the insides, backs of the cards, and envelopes!

The quotes are inspirational to me, and were sufficient alone on the covers of the cards...at first. I realized after photographing them, that I MUST decorate the fronts with glitter glue swirls!

How amazing in the background paper? I found it in Boston, and can't wait to use it on a black scrapbook page...though no idea which photos to place on top of the swirls. 

Paris & Card #37

As I created a third card with a photo taken in Paris, I wondered why I’d never posted about the city? In my excitement to create many cards last year, I just grabbed random photos, but now that I’m a bit more organized, I’m trying to created themed posts of cards (stay tuned for fruits and veggies!). Last year, cards of Notre Dame Cathedral, along with the exterior of the Musee de l'Armée were featured.

We were in Paris four years ago for just a few days, and crammed in as much as possible while attempting to not run ourselves ragged (aided by outstanding meals and chocolate croissants). Recommended ideas for tourists include a river cruise, in the evening if possible.

A day trip to Versailles is easy by train, though it’s not essential for first-timers on a tight schedule, in my opinion. When I first saw this room during my junior year abroad, I thought it was a ballroom. Come to find out, it’s just a hallway! My entire house would fit into less than half of this hallway…

Artists with a phenomenal backdrop! When booking a hotel, I get travel guides from the library to learn about neighborhoods and transportation options, read reviews on tripadvisor.com and make a chart to compare my favorites (free breakfast?, special package deals, etc.). We preferred the Musee d’Orsay over the Louvre, and also benefitted from taking the hop-on-hop-off bus tour around town to Sacre Coeur and other neighborhoods. Do you have a favorite Parisian location to share?

Cards #34, 35, and 36 (nature and tomato)

I’ve fallen behind in the card challenge, but hope you’ve enjoyed the cookie posts! I jumped up and down when I saw this door in Hudson, NY. Leaning propped against a brick wall covered with ivy, what a perfect shot. Where would you like this door to bring you?

This cabin at Squam Lake in NH looks ideally situated among the trees by the water. No, it’s not mine! Just a lovely, dreamy photo…

I posted these lovies last year, but had extra prints made to share via greeting cards.

I finally organized the new drawers that were installed as part of the post-flood basement renovation, so I am ready to proceed with the card per week challenge.

Card #33 (fabric)

I’m back on the greeting card challenge, ready to try some new ideas. Those of you who cut cloth regularly know that ordinary scissors can’t get the job done well, but I just made that discovery. I thought it would be clever to cut cloth shapes for greeting cards, but may stick to cutting paper instead! Good thing I had “snips” on hand from a previously jewelry making class... it took way more effort to create heart shapes than I had anticipated. The white one is made of paper.

I also learned that adhering cloth to paper cards may result in warped paper if the card stock isn’t very thick, even using a minimal amount of glue. For the next card, I will try a layer of cloth-decorated cardstock (slightly warped) adhered to a plain card with traditional tape runner. OR I can figure out if there are other adhesives to use with cloth on paper…

I’ve been preparing post cards for the fun of it, in anticipation of next April’s National Letter Writing Month. I’m not counting the postcards towards this 52 week challenge, but here’s a sneak peek of the pile of altered cards I’ve been grinning over:

Cards # 30, 31, and 32 Paris, Panama, Puerto Ayora

I wish for everyone the opportunity to travel the world and learn more about cultures other than our own. I feel fortunate that I grew up in a military family, and took my first international flight before I can remember. Vacations are not limited to destinations within driving, train or bus distance.

This trip to Paris was for a wedding anniversary. Though just a few short days due to budget and other limitations, it was well worth the travel time. The food was outstanding, and we decided to get museum admission "card” for tourists to gain entrance to a number of famous locales. The Musee D’Orsay was my favorite.

The evening photo of Panama City yielded interesting shades of blue because it was taken under a restaurant patio roof, looking into twilight. There were cars driving past us but this view is more serene. We were fascinated by the canal locks and enjoyed the food throughout the three regions we visited.

We took many photos of the fish market in Puerto Ayora (Galapagos, Ecuador), but they couldn’t convey the amusing scene well enough to show via still pictures: fishermen filleting large catch, surrounded by eager “helpers”: a sea lion bobbing its head in time with the man’s arm motions, pelicans and marine iguanas awaiting scraps that were tossed their way from time to time.  

Cards # 27, 28 and 29 Wildlife

In an effort to send out two dozen cards to a group of people, I used the dining table and created a pile of photo cards without embellishments. They are low on creativity but high on interesting content. Two of these wildlife sightings are part of travel posts from earlier this year, though the trips span a couple of decades!

This lizard was lounging in the middle of a small river in Panama, at the birding lodge outside of El Valle. I made other cards from photos that were included in several travel blog posts here, so I won’t repeat them now.

This monkey was resting at a safari camp in Tanazia, East Africa. I was so overwhelmed with the amazing diversity of animals that I didn’t take notes of every species we saw, so I can't give any details on this one.

I debated about including a photo taken of an animal in captivity, since I have so many of free wildlife. Giraffes are my favorite in the whole world, and I included a photo of them in Africa in a previous post. The giraffe pictured here lives at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. So majestic. 

Cards # 25 and 26 – Ecuador Part 1

I’ve missed creating new cards while the basement floor has been ripped up, dehumidified, and replaced. I had intended to take a break from travel cards and make more creative mixed media ones, but that’s on hold for now. I had made these in anticipation of being out of town a few times over the summer, so I “saved them up” for use later on but will share them now. Maybe I should start cooking again!

Ecuador is amazing, and we’d highly recommend it. The Galapagos Islands are a wonder unto themselves, and well worth the extra flight and fees. I initially thought that the $100 park fee was a tourist “rip-off”, but after seeing these guys wandering freely- NOT in a zoo, I didn’t mind the expense. The giant tortoises were like creatures from a movie, but they were beautiful in their own right- and seemed just as curious about us as we were about them!

Many people take cruises around the Galapagos Islands, but due to our somewhat limited time and budget, we stayed on land and took day tours of nearby islands. We did not use special zoom lenses to take these photos- they were that close. The animals were not afraid of people, though we were instructed to not touch them or feed them “people food”. We saw an iguana wandering down the street in Puerto Ayora, but we were on a restaurant balcony so couldn’t get a good photo. It was hilarious watching him/her saunter down the sidewalk.

There are a number of hotels and B&B’s on Santa Cruz, one of the larger inhabited islands. The food was great, and we met interesting fellow tourists from around the world, including a couple from our state! Knowing some Spanish helped in the Quito area, but English sufficed for most of the Galapagos experiences. I haven’t thought of a reason to send a card with a large, albeit colorful crab on it, so no card for this critter yet. Maybe someday, a “sorry I was a crab” card, or “hope you’re feeling less crabby soon” to a good friend? 

Cards # 20 and 21 - African Safari Part 2

We were on a low-budget tour, sleeping in 2 person tents on the ground, with campground bathing facilities. I tried a new (to me) technique to mat this ostrich photo: I searched for a green paper to use as a mat, but didn’t like the shades I had on hand. I used an ink pad to color over a paler green paper to create a more vibrant frame. Too much ink came onto the paper at first, so I blotted some off with a paper napkin that was nearby.

I don't know the names of these cuties, but here are some iridescent birds. I slipped the card into a frame I got in Nairobi. 

Your future safari experience may be very different from mine. An acquaintance took one out of South Africa a few years ago, and  stayed in gorgeous hotels with private plunge pools and "regular" restaurants. We sat on tiny stools near the camp fire and ate with one plate and one fork whatever the cook had prepared for us (usually good, but not gourmet- who cares, we’re on a safari!). 

Our teeth rattled in our heads as we jounced for miles over rutted roads in an older vehicle whose shock absorbers were surely out-shocked, but it was still great! As a result, our price was do-able for a small group of 20-something women without corporate jobs to foot the bill for a luxury tour. I can’t recommend any particular company, so have fun researching the details.  

Cards # 18 and 19 – African Safari Part 1

Yes, that is a pile of lions snoozing on a hill of rocks! Clever how they blend in nicely, eh? I visited a friend serving in the Peace Corps in East Africa over a decade ago, before I had a digital camera. I did get a snazzy zoom lens, though! This once in a lifetime experience was amazing, and I’ll never forget it. I’m fortunate to have travelled with a savvy group of women who had gathered advice from other PCV’s and knew which safari tour guide to negotiate a good price with in Tanzania.

I received two types of cloth that I placed under the cards. One was from a friend who grew up in Zimbabwe, another was sold in Uganda and has a proverb in Swahili on it (next post). A group of gazelles munched contentedly as we passed by in the vehicle, which paused regularly to let us “ooh” and “aah”.

I flew into Kenya, took a bus to the safari out of Arusha, then took another bus to Uganda after the safari. The only good thing to come of our basement flood last month was that I found a few extra safari photos that had been tucked somewhere away from the regular box of extra prints, so I had enough for two posts from this trip without having to rip anything out of the scrapbook. My favorite non-wildlife photo is this sunset: